This Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2013 photo shows musician John Mellencamp, left, and writer Stephen King at a press preview of the musical "Ghost Brothers of Darkland County" at the Indiana University Auditorium in Bloomington, Ind. The musical by Mellencamp, King and T Bone Burnett will debut in Bloomington on Thursday before embarking on a tour of 20 U.S. cities. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Photo: Michael Conroy, STF

This Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2013 photo shows musician John Mellencamp,...

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This Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2013 photo shows musician John Mellencamp after a press preview of the musical "Ghost Brothers of Darkland County" at the Indiana University Auditorium in Bloomington, Ind. The musical by Mellencamp, writer Stephen King and T Bone Burnett will debut in Bloomington on Thursday before embarking on a tour of 20 U.S. cities. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Photo: Michael Conroy, STF

This Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2013 photo shows musician John Mellencamp...

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Bruce Greenwood, left, takes a starring role in ﻿"Ghost Brothers of Darkland County," a musical play created by horror writer Stephen King and rock star John Mellencamp.﻿

Photo: Michael Conroy, STF

Bruce Greenwood, left, takes a starring role in ﻿"Ghost Brothers...

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This Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2013 photo shows the cast of the musical "Ghost Brothers of Darkland County" performing during a press event in Bloomington, Ind. The musical by John Mellencamp, writer Stephen King and T Bone Burnett will debut in Bloomington this fall before embarking on a tour of 20 U.S. cities. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Photo: Michael Conroy, STF

This Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2013 photo shows the cast of the musical...

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This Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2013 photo shows Bruce Greenwood, center, as Joe McCandless, center, during a dress rehearsal of the musical "Ghost Brothers of Darkland County" at the Indiana University Auditorium in Bloomington, Ind. The musical by John Mellencamp, writer Stephen King and T Bone Burnett will debut in Bloomington on Thursday before embarking on a tour of 20 U.S. cities. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Photo: Michael Conroy, STF

This Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2013 photo shows Bruce Greenwood, center, as...

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This Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2013 photo shows Eric Moore, as Dan Coker, center, during a dress rehearsal of the musical "Ghost Brothers of Darkland County" at the Indiana University Auditorium in Bloomington, Ind. The musical by John Mellencamp, writer Stephen King and T Bone Burnett will debut in Bloomington on Thursday before embarking on a tour of 20 U.S. cities. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Photo: Michael Conroy, STF

This Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2013 photo shows Eric Moore, as Dan Coker,...

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This Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2013 photo shows Eric Moore, as Dan Coker, center, during a dress rehearsal of the musical "Ghost Brothers of Darkland County" at the Indiana University Auditorium in Bloomington, Ind. The musical by John Mellencamp, writer Stephen King and T Bone Burnett will debut in Bloomington on Thursday before embarking on a tour of 20 U.S. cities. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Photo: Michael Conroy, STF

This Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2013 photo shows Eric Moore, as Dan Coker,...

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This Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2013 photo shows Bruce Greenwood, center, as Joe McCandless, performing during a dress rehearsal of "Ghost Brothers of Darkland County" at the Indiana University Auditorium in Bloomington, Ind. The musical by John Mellencamp, writer Stephen King and T Bone Burnett will debut in Bloomington on Thursday before embarking on a tour of 20 U.S. cities. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Photo: Michael Conroy, STF

This Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2013 photo shows Bruce Greenwood, center, as...

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This undated publicity photo provided by PBS shows, from left, Elizabeth McGovern as Lady Grantham, Hugh Bonneville as Lord Grantham, Dan Stevens as Matthew Crawley, Penelope Wilton as Isobel Crawley, Allen Leech as Tom Branson, Jim Carter as Mr. Carson, and Phyllis Logan as Mrs. Hughes, from the TV series, "Downton Abbey." PBS is setting the table for the "Downton Abbey" feast ahead with a preview special planned for broadcast in December. PBS' "Masterpiece" says "Return to Downton Abbey" will air on Dec. 1 with what is billed as "a tantalizing taste" of the upcoming season, which begins Jan. 5. (AP Photo/PBS, Carnival Film & Television Limited 2012 for MASTERPIECE, Nick Briggs)

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - A musical production that's the result of a collaboration between rocker John Mellencamp and horror writer Stephen King is launching a 20-city theatrical tour in Indiana.

"Ghost Brothers of Darkland County" was 13 years in the making as King and Mellencamp worked on it between what the rocker calls their "real jobs."

The musical's roots lie in a cabin Mellencamp bought on Lake Monroe in southern Indiana to use as a family retreat. He said he quickly noticed strange occurrences, such as window blinds opening and items moving around. He learned from the previous owners that the cabin was believed to be haunted by two young men who had died there decades before in a quarrel over a young woman.

Mellencamp went to King with an idea for a musical play featuring two brothers who are ghosts and haunt the cabin.

"I just kind of went ... that's my sweet spot," King said.

The unconventional musical, which King describes as a "real hybrid of the musical experience and radio show," has evolved since the pair conceived the idea. Spoken words drive the story just as they do in a play. The music helps flesh out the characters.

King said the pair met in Florida, New York, Maine and at Mellencamp's southern Indiana studio to work on the production.

Mellencamp said they don't have a long-range plan for the show, but both say they never set out to do a traditional Broadway production.

"I don't have a problem with Broadway, but I do think that a lot of the shows and a lot of the musicals are really, really big. And we wanted to do something that was kind of like 'Big River,' " King said. "It was a little bit smaller, a little bit grittier, a little bit more down-home America."

Associated Press

Raffle offers chance to own a Picasso for $135

NEW YORK - An online raffle is offering the public a chance to own an original Picasso work for $135.

The piece is titled "Man With Opera Hat." The 12-inch-by-9-inch cubist drawing from 1914 is valued at about $1 million.

The raffle's proceeds will go toward the preservation of the ancient city of Tyre, Lebanon, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The raffle is being offered by the International Association to Save Tyre. The drawing will be held at Sotheby's auction house in Paris on Dec. 18. It'll be broadcast live on the Internet.